After hearing about the 8,000 prisoners being released into counties throughout California, residents have been inundating the Hemet Police Department with information requests related to the number of eligible inmates being released into the City of Hemet.
The Hemet Police Department said it requested additional information from the Riverside County Probation Department related to the number of offenders being released under Post Release Community Supervision (PRCS).
It was reported that 22 PRCS parolees are scheduled to be released to the City of Hemet from July 17 through December 24, stated a release issued by Chief Pust of the Hemet Police Department. The release further stated that 16 PRCS parolees that are categorized as homeless will also be released to the Hemet area. It is unknown where specifically the parolees will end up.
The Hemet Police Department said it was told that the Riverside County Probation Department homeless officer is tasked to work with Behavioral Health outreach programs to find suitable housing to secure spots for the homeless offenders before they are released.
These numbers provided were projected numbers based on several factors to include the reported future address or community of the person being released. The projected numbers are only for the City of Hemet and not the county area of Hemet or other areas of the Hemet San Jacinto Valley.
Communities throughout California were told that decompression measures are taken place in the California prison system to provide health and safety to the incarcerated population. This is after many changes have been made in the past few years in California’s criminal justice system, where thousands of offenders where released whose crimes were considered non-violent.
Now, the more serious offenders are being released due to the health and safety of the current prison population. The impacts on the communities and the public will change significantly and California communities will likely see a significant increase in crime.
The Hemet Police Department said it will continue to partner with allied agencies and resources regarding matters that may negatively impact our community.